Karen Klein: Cruel, yet not unusual.

The video of Karen Klein, the ridiculed 68-year-old bus monitor from the Rochester suburb of Greece has gone viral. Millions of people, apparently around the world, have watched the 10-minute clip of kids mocking Klein for her weight, sweat glands and choice in tote bag. She endured it and restrained herself throughout the entire ordeal.

After a few million Facebook posts, YouTube comments and tweets, over $500,000 has been raised in support of Klein and the verbal abuse she endured.

This raises the question: Why did all of these people feel so moved to donate to Karen Klein? What was it about this incident that stood out from all the innumerable episodes of bullying that happen every day. Was it something more than the power of the Internet?

Sara Hodges, a social psychology professor at the University of Oregon,says that the sense of identification many felt for Klein and her trauma is what made the news explode. “It’s such a clear case of somebody who is being bullied. She’s all alone, and she has no allies. … And what the kids are saying is so obviously hurtful. … It’s so compelling that you can’t turn away.”

As cruel as the kid’s actions were, they certainly were not unusual.

Not only is Klein now a face of the much debated issue of “bullying,” she also now represents a demographic often unnoticed in school cruelty — the adults.

David Hall, an author and educator who also leads anti-bullying seminars, reported working with a Jewish teacher“who felt intimidated by a student who professed to be a neo-Nazi. The student, he said, would insist on reading Adolf Hitler’s “Mein Kampf” in the teacher’s study hall periods.”

Other educators have experienced the same sort of abuse as well. “I’ve had erasers thrown at me, among other things, but these are things that teachers go through,” said Rosalind Wiseman, author of the bestseller “Queen Bees and Wannabes.”

What do you think? Will this shed a fresh light on the often cruel, disrespectful treatment of students towards the teachers and faculty in schools? Or will nothing more than a viral video and a great vacation for Klein come out of this unfortunate happening? Should something come out of it? What?

9 Responses

When I grew up in Colonie there wasn’t any “prohibition” on publishing the names of “juvenile delinquents” such as those that bullied this woman. As a matter of fact they even published the parents’ names. It was a fantastic deterrent! You didn’t want your name in the paper unless you won a merit badge or something good, trust me on that! Can you imagine the public shame that would be felt by the parents of these kids, the humiliation, and downright hurt brought on in the betrayal of trust by their children. I couldn’t believe that these “delinquents” weren’t even required to deliver their supposed letters of apology themselves to Ms. Klien. What lesson was learned there? The thought or chance of public humiliation is a powerful deterrent, maybe we should return to its use!

This incident with Karen Klein is the most horrendous I have ever witnessed in 35 years of teaching. I have, indeed, over the years, heard many of those comments, and more. Most of those have been done in anger, due to the students’ inability to develop good anger management skills. The “Karen Klein Incident” was a prolonged, ten minute verbal attack seemilngly for the enjoyment and entertainment of the children. This, I have never seen. The students undoubtedly felt there would be no consequenses for their actions; witness Ms. Klein’s remarks on “writing them up” -What will be done? Loosing up the purse strings. Don’t subject financial aid to school districts based on suspensions. Allow administrators and staff to follow through on removing these students, just as they would be remlved if they behaved like that in the public library, a store, a docto’s office.

Yup, make it out to be something that it is not – there is no crisis here! And ignore the reality that a half million dollars was given in support of this woman and the reflection of our society that fact that gives off.

Too many parents today can’t be bothered to teach their kids basic manners……let alone respect for your elders. Our society is infatuated with being “consumers”. Work work work so we can buy buy buy. Raising children and decent parenting are put on the backburner. Todays kids are left to raise themselves as they see fit. If that were one of my kids to talk to that woman in that manner in that video, they would STILL be tasting soap in their mouth! When I was a kid, we were taught that you NEVER talk back or direspect an elder, you did NOT run around a restaurant or doctor’s office or raise your voice in public. We were taught what is acceptable behavior, and that just doesnt happen anymore.

The outrage is that she HAD to take it because the law has given the students more power than the teachers. Allow adults to be adults and smack some sense into kids and their behavior would change. I know violence should only be done in self defense, but in the case of children a good whoopin sends a message. I hope all the hippies that took over public education are happy now.

If all you parents out there would “raise” your children instead of letting the little brats “express themselves” we wouldn’t have this problem. Start being parents and teach them how to respect people and places!

We will all see these kids again in about 4 or 5 years, arrested for some violent crime. They’ll be back, it’s in their bloodI.

In spite of the times union’s philosophy that these little darlings should be handled gently (see past times union editorial ” More justice for juveniles”, Oct 2, 2011) these future criminals will be coddled and handled gently as to not hurt their precious self esteem.

So set the clock for a few years from now and we will all read about these kids again, arrested for an array of criminal activity.

Chad9766 is totally correct, idiot politicians and judges give more power to future criminals like these punks than to do the administrators in school who should have the authority to kick their a_ _. But not here in liberal land where we just shake our finger and give our little darlings a time out.

You need a license to catch a fish but hey, your are free to breed the next generation of criminals that we’ll have to pay for, in every way.

I say that the Principal should be given the authority to give the little Brats a choice. Repeat the year over and give Mrs Klein a formal apology or take 20 wacks on their bare A** with the paddle and give her the same apology. Amen to that.

There has always been bullying, but now it is all too
commonplace and is no longer addressed. I fault George
W. Bush’s Texas macho persona of “Either you’re with us
or against us” and Tea Party town meetings where gays,
the unemployed, and uninsured are told to “go away and
die”. Or, the Republican congressman who felt entitled
to shout “You lie” during President Obama’s State of
the Union speech. The demise of newspapers and network
news and their accompanying censors and standards is
also to blame as is the proliferation of social media
tools which make anonymous bullying a sure bet. But,
most of all, I blame parents who are afraid to set
boundaries or too distracted and clueless to be
effective role models.